Just in time for the Socialist Studies 2017 Congress in Toronto, the Spring 2017 edition of Socialist Studies/Études socialistes is now available online.
Many people speak about a “labour of love” to indicate the long-suffering patience of an endeavour that is worthy in and of itself. Although it might not make sense to speak of a journal as a labour of love, it is the case that you, dear readers and contributors, have been long-suffering and patient while I have laboured to complete this issue. Happily, we have another excellent issue of Socialist Studies! Contributions in this issue cover the gambit from Marx as an international theorist to the challenges of transcending “climate capitalism”; we journey to Cuba through Caliban, and remember Stuart Hall; we learn of real alternatives to capitalism and how we might decolonize our minds and classrooms; and importantly, we hear from authors and their “critics” in engagements about important and timely works, such as that by Dr. Paul Kellogg entitled Escaping the Staples Trap.
And, we are not at a loss for future content. Nearing completion now is a Special Issue on the Ghadar Movement (if you don’t know what it is, great… another reason to read Socialist Studies), this will be followed by a mini-issue on the works of William Morrris, and we hope to finish the year (or start the new year) with a Special Issue dedicated to Maoism and Class struggle in Canada. As it stands, our next “regular” issue will be in April 2018 but I am still accepting articles for the issue, so please, submit.
As I look to the future of Socialist Studies, it is busy and bright. But there are challenges. The Journal is run on mostly voluntary labour and a small contract for technical support. Finding reviewers is growing more difficult as everyone feels the pinch of increasing work-life demands. As I continue to look for creative ways to manage a professional, scholarly Journal within the important mission and mandate the Society has established for Socialist Studies, I invite each of you as readers, contributing authors, supporters, activists, scholars and comrades to think collectively with me about how to ensure that our Journal continues to provide the open space for critical engagement with a world that is in desperate need for real alternatives.
~ Sandra Rein
Editor, Socialist Studies/Études socialistes